The time is 'Right Now' for Emporia State's Gabe & Benny

The Emporia State community has a new anthem, thanks to two undergraduates at the university.

Gabe Andrews and Benny Bowden are both juniors from El Dorado. The duo has been performing as Gabe & Benny for 2½ years, despite Andrews attending Butler Community College and Bowden at Emporia State.

"Ever since we started making music, we've been talking about doing a song for the college we go to,” said Bowden. “We would always see kids from D-1 schools making songs that go viral, and we noticed how well the students at those schools responded to the songs.”

Once Andrews transferred to Emporia, the two knew the time was right. They began writing their song, “Right Now,” last spring and contacted Jason Bosch, director of student life learning and assessment, about using it during new student orientation activities for the fall semester.

“We pitched him the idea and he was psyched from the start,” said Bowden of Bosch. “He has a really cool vision for getting new students pumped to be at school and taking pride in what that means.”

A key way to get students pumped up about the song was to perform it live Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012, during Hornet Pride. The song also was played during Tuesday night’s Block Party in downtown Emporia.

And on Wednesday, the first day of classes, Emporia State President Michael D. Shonrock shared the song with all faculty, staff and students through an email that had a link to the free download — www.gabeandbenny.com.

“We are pumped to give Emporia yet another thing to be proud of,” said Bowden, “and we can't wait for everyone to hear it!”

Emporia State University is a dynamic and progressive student-centered learning community that fosters student success through engagement in academic excellence, community and global involvement, and the pursuit of personal and professional fulfillment.